Note from the Author: Sorry it's taken me forever and a day to update this. I've had personal laziness and beta issues. (I love you Ama!) But, here's chapter 3, so I hope you all enjoy.

To Bant: I'm glad you like the diabetes aspect of this. I do to. Hmm… contacts, I like that!

To Amaya: My number one Tasuki fan, eh? You'll enjoy this chapter.

To any other reviewers: Thank you for sending your comments in! They inspire me. I need to go update "Hajime" before my inbox spills over….

Translations:

Demo: But

Matte: Wait

Arigatou: Thank You

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Chapter 3: A Second Priestess: An Answer From a Stranger

Kaede lay awake in bed early in the morning, staring at the wood-plastered ceiling in the dim light of the morning. Being underground, her watch was the only thing that let her know what time of day it was. However, judging by the time Genrou and she had gone to bed last night, she predicted it was roughly four and a half hours fast.

It had been a restless night, and not because of the time difference she underwent. Her worrying mind kept her awake, though she did manage to drift off into sleep for short periods of time before waking again. She was so lost, physically and mentally. She still didn't know where "Reikaku" was or why she was there, and the words Genrou had said to her the day before were bewildering.

"Miaka… she died… could there really be… another one?"

"Kaede, you may jus' be the answer t'our prayers."

What was "another one"? And who was Miaka? Had someone like Kaede been taken to this strange world before?

After long deliberation, Kaede knew that the book she had found in the National Library, the Shijin Tenchi Sho, had somehow brought her here. How, she wasn't sure. However, even these questions were not what had kept her up during the night.

Kaede was a diabetic. She had been since she was 11. She had needed an injection of insulin every day since then, sometimes more. Her disease, which was fairly common back home, didn't even exist in this world. If it did, no one knew how to diagnose it, most likely.

She had five doses of insulin with her when she arrived, and she used one of them last night. The way she figured it, she had roughly six days altogether, and one was gone. She felt like an egg timer… once the ring sounded…

She could only recall ever having an accident once, when she had first been diagnosed with the disease. She had hating getting the shots every single day, and they made her sore. Her fingertips, not used to the new routine, ached from being constantly poked for blood samples. So she stopped, figuring since she had been just fine before, she'd be just fine not taking the insulin. She remembered being tired all day at school, and after dinner—well, she didn't recall what happened exactly, but she had woken up in the hospital. She promised her dad never to forget her insulin again.

Kaede wondered what it would be like to go comatose, or even…

A swift knock came at the door and it opened without an invitation, Genrou's familiar head of orange hair poking into the small room. Noticing that she was awake, he turned a knob on the lantern and let more light into the area.

"Sleep okay?" He finally said.

Kaede shook her head, "I guess I'm just not used to sleeping outside of my own bed." She lied, smiling faintly, "and it's a little cold." She took a moment to scan the clothes the bandit was wearing. They consisted of several more layers than what he had been wearing yesterday, and he had a cloak around his shoulders.

"You should rest some more," he began, "I'm headin' out fer a while, but I'll send someone by to check up on ya and all."

She sat up. "Demo…"

He left, shutting the door behind her.

Kaede watched the spot Genrou had just been in for a moment, then threw the covers off herself and ran to the door. "M-matte!" She shouted after him, opening the door to a dark hallway. "I don't know anyone else around here!"

After several moments of silence, she realized her objections were futile, and returned to bed.

Kaede, having actually fallen asleep, awoke to a loud, firm knocking on her door. She glanced at her wristwatch. She had only slept for about an hour. She was going to inquire who was at her door, but, to her surprise, the mystery man did it for her.

"Who's there? A little help th' boss sent fer the new guest. Oh! Let me get dressed. Okay." There was a pause, "I'm ready! I'm comin' in!"

The door opened and a man entered who had a few similar traits to Genrou, though his hair was colored blue and his eyes were green. There was also a long scar running down his right cheek.

Kaede raised an eyebrow at the circus act she had just witnessed.

"So," he spoke, "You must be the ass-kicker Genrou brought home."

She blinked several times. "And you are…?"

"Name's Kouji." The bandit smiled. "Genrou had to leave fer th' usual errands, so I get t'be the babysitter fer a while."

She frowned. "Babysitter?"

He nodded and stuck his thumb out the way he had come. "Breakfast'll be ready soon, so y'should come eat."

Hesitantly Kaede got out of bed and slipped the vest to her uniform back on, followed by her socks and shoes. She grabbed her hairclip off the table and put her bangs back as she followed Kouji down to the dining area.

There were a lot more men at the tables that morning then there had been the day before, and she watched them carefully as Kouji went to get her some food. By the time he returned, Kaede had given up all hope of seeing another woman in the place.

She ate her rice quietly, occasionally examining the room and the men in it. She caught a few looking her way, and one licked his lips when she met his eyes. Disgusted, she decided it would be better to stare at her own table.

The silence continued a little longer before she thought of a conversation starter. "What's Kutou?"

"Huh?" Kouji asked, giving her his attention.

"Kutou," she repeated, "Genrou mentioned something about them yesterday. It didn't sound good."

Kouji put his chin in his hand. "You really don't know much of anythin', do ya?" Seeing a negative response, he went on. "Th' country yer in right now is Konan. It ain't as big as these other ones around us, but it works out." He plopped some rice into his mouth and quickly swallowed it. "Kutou's the country next t'us, in the east. Bunch of low-life bastards over there. The place is obsessed with blood n' war, and th' emperor has wanted Konan's land fer a long time. Anyway, two years ago, no thanks to the Seiryu no Miko, Kutou finally got its wish. Konan's armies just died out—I don't know the details of exactly what happened. But now all our people gotta suffer under this new Emperor's tyranny, they can't even do so much as breathe too loudly or they'll get the knife."

Kaede stared wide-eyed as she heard the story, not knowing if she should say any words of sympathy or just remain silent.

"A lot of th' men gotta work in metal-mining and whatever crap th' government wants 'em t'do. That's one of th' reasons we all live underground like this. Actually, it's a good thing we moved when we did, 'cause Reikaku, the old one, got burned to th' ground just a week or two later."

"That's horrible." Kaede whispered. "Did the emperor… Konan's emperor, did he…"

"Do anythin' t'stop it?" Kouji finished for her, "There wasn't much he could do. Him 'n his whole family's been under a sort of house arrest ever since the 'big blue' stepped in."

She took a moment to absorb this information. The passage from the Shijin Tenchi Sho she had read came to mind. Could it have been talking about Konan?

"Lucky fer us they haven't found Genrou yet."

"Lucky?" She repeated.

"It'd be a pain gettin' a new leader." He explained.

Her jaw dropped. "He's… the leader?"

A nod. "I told you th' boss was th' one who sent me."

Again, she took a moment to let Kouji's words sink in. "And they want him because he's the leader?"

"Nah, they want him 'cause he's a member of the Suzaku seven." Kouji grinned as though saying it was an honor, "to this day they only know where three of the seven are. Genrou's still safe."

After breakfast, Kaede thanked Kouji for his assistance and said she was tired, so he led her back to her room. She lay down on top of the covers for a while, contemplating the new information she had been given.

So Genrou was the leader of the Reikaku bandits? It was hard to believe, he seemed so young. No older than 21, she guessed. And one of the Suzaku seven? Who were the Suzaku seven? And why would Kutou want to know where they were? It seemed every new thing Kaede learned, a handful of new questions came with it.

Unable to go back to sleep, Kaede quietly opened the door to her room and looked around, not seeing anyone. She stepped out into the hallway. She noticed the floor was made of packed dirt. She recognized one corridor as the one Kouji had led her down and back up again when they had gone to the dining room. Not wanting to run into anyone, she took the small path to her left. She came upon another door, opened it, and peeked in. The room inside was like hers, but a little larger. It was also cluttered with articles of clothing and wood chips. Uninterested, she continued on the path. The next door was further away, and a little bigger than the last. She opened it and peeked in too, hoping she wouldn't walk in on someone. Not hearing anyone, she widened the gap more and stuck her head in.

This room was about twice… maybe three times the size of the last. The bed was bigger, too. The floor was still nothing but packed dirt and the ceiling still had the same support beams as the rest of the place, but it seemed… homier. Kaede stepped inside and shut the door behind her.

"Hello?" She called, just to be sure. Getting no response, she walked around slowly, looking over everything. She first went to a dresser along the right wall. There was a single string of prayer beads on it, and a pair of violet earrings. She marveled at the pieces of jewelry, liking the earrings the most. She became aware that she was snooping, and felt a little guilty, stepping away from the dresser. She debated continuing her escapade when a voice startled her.

"Y'probably shouldn't be in here."

She jumped and turned, seeing Kouji at the doorway. He didn't look mad, which made her breathe a sigh of relief. "Gomen, I didn't mean to…"

"It'll be our little secret." He teased, opening the door wider to let her out. "Genrou doesn't got anythin' t'hide anyway."

Kaede felt embarrassed as she returned to the hallway. So that was Genrou's room, huh?

"Ne, Kouji," she said as they started to move again, "can we go outside?"

Kouji turned around and rubbed the back of his head. "I'm… not sure that's a great idea, this place supposedly bein' secret and all."

"Oh." Kaede replied, "It's just… kinda cramped down here. Isn't there a back exit or something?"

He thought for a moment, then agreed. "Alright, let's go."

Kouji led her to the same ladder Genrou had, and he scanned the outside before letting her come up. He pulled the cover back over the entrance and hid it cleverly, tossing a few pebbles onto it for the finishing touches.

Kaede pulled up her knee-highs and started walking, then broke out into a run, winding around the willow tree and back. It felt good to stretch out her legs.

"There aren't any swimming pools around here, are there?"

Kouji looked at her strangely. "Swimmin' pool? Well… there's a lake 'bout a mile that way." He pointed.

She looked in the direction and nodded. "Good, I'll remember that."

While Kaede explored the area around them, Kouji kept his guard up, watching for any sign of irregular movement or wayward persons. Not many souls came by this way, but he'd rather be safe than sorry.

Once getting her feel of the outdoors, Kaede headed back to Kouji to go back inside.

"Incoming!" He called as she neared him.

The girl looked up so see a bird flying at her. She shrieked and ducked, feeling its wingtips brushing her hair as she did so. She turned to see it land on an outstretched arm.

"Genrou?" Kaede asked.

Genrou took something out of the bird's grasp and walked towards them. "What're you guys doin' out here?"

"My charge wanted some air." Kouji answered, completely unthreatened by the other bandit.

Genrou lifted his arm and let the bird perch on a low branch of a tree, twirling a small flower between his fingers.

"What's that?" Kaede asked, pointing.

He tossed it into her lap. It was a small liliac.

"What's this supposed to mean?" She stood, holding up the flower.

"Meetin' place number two." Genrou answered. He neared Kouji and leaned in towards him. "I gotta head down t'that White Dragon place t'night."

"Need assistance?" Kouji asked, his voice low and serious.

"Keep the men here."

Kouji looked past Genrou at Kaede, who was watching the two curiously. "Whatta 'bout her?"

He thought for a moment. "I'll take her with me—keep 'er covered. I don't want her outta my sight, just in case she is…"

Kouji nodded. He opened his mouth to say something, but then noticed that the brunette had gotten much closer and was trying to listen in.

When both bandits stopped talking and looked at her, she frowned. "Were you talking about me?"

Genrou waved his hand at her. "We're goin' back inside. C'mon."

Kaede maneuvered through the darkness, having a hard time since Genrou was walking so fast. The second the sun had set he had tossed a large shawl at her and half-dragged her out of Reikaku so they could go to "meeting place number two." Kaede knew the bird had been sent as a messenger, but who were they meeting? Another bandit? An informant of some kind?

Almost tripping over a tree root, she reached forward and held onto part of Genrou's cloak, making it a little easier to navigate. Whether he noticed or not, he didn't say anything.

After a very long walk, the faint sounds of the village could be heard. Genrou stopped, looking around. The village wasn't anything like Tokyo—Kaede could barely make out anything. There were only a few lanterns here and there, a few lit windows. She heard her companion start moving again, but she couldn't tell where.

"Genrou?" She whispered, a little scared.

A hand grabbed hers and she stifled a yelp of surprise. Genrou shushed her and pulled her through the shadows. They stopped again outside a building—a bar by the way it sounded. Genrou directed her to the back of the structure, behind where the horses were tied up.

"Where are we?" Kaede whispered, pulling the shawl off her head.

"Th' White Dragon." Came a reply so quiet it was barely audible.

The conversation after that was nonexistent for nearly 10 minutes as the two waited in pure silence by the bar. Every now and then a horse would grunt or kicked its hooves into the dirt.

"Genrou?"

He didn't respond, but she could tell he was listening.

"Who are the Suzaku Seven?"

He turned towards her sharply, what little light there was reflecting off his amber eyes.

"…Kouji told me you were one of them." She explained silently.

"I'll tell ya when we get back. Be quiet."

Kaede folded her arms and again waited in the darkness, making sure even her breathing was mute. She imagined there was a good reason for their hushed presence.

After another five minutes, the sounds of footsteps could be heard coming their way. Kaede froze, Genrou peeked around to see who it was. Before he could make out anything though, a sword was drawn loudly from its sheath, the glimmering blade being pointed at his throat.

"What do we have here?" A low, grizzly voice asked. "Konan citizens out passed curfew?"

Genrou cursed in his mind as the blade pushed into his neck, right below his adam's apple.

Kaede felt a rough hand cover her mouth, a thick arm wrapping around her chest to keep her from moving. She struggled, trying to shout out to Genrou.

Genrou turned his head to confront the soldier who had Kaede, but the persistence of the sword at his neck forbid him not too.

"What's yer name, boy?" The armed soldier asked.

Kaede watched in fear as the deadly blade threatened Genrou. She could make out his hand trying to inconspicuously reach behind him, as if trying to get something underneath his cloak.

"I asked what yer name was!" The soldier shouted. Getting not response, the soldier drew his weapon back. "You'll be sorry for yer disobidience!"

When the sword didn't come down, Kaede strained her eyes to see why, and made out a pale hand around the large man's wrist. As the guard turned around, something hit him, and he went flying back into the side of the tavern.

The man holding Kaede shoved her to the ground and he ran at his cohort's attacker, raising a long spear over his shoulder. He lunged at the cloaked individual, but at no avail. The stranger stepped to the side gracefully, grabbing the spear as it passed by and yanking it from the Kutou man's hands. He spun it around swiftly and hit the soldier in the back of the head with it, the spear breaking in two from the force. The first solider got back up to fight again, but Genrou retrieved the item he had been searching for from his back and hit him in the stomach with it, sending the soldier into unconsciousness.

Kaede stood up slowly, trying to calm the shaking in her hands and knees. Genrou pushed his cape aside, putting the metallic object into a hoister on his back.

"Was that good timin' or were ya tryin' t'make an entrance?" He asked, a little louder than a whisper.

"Since when did we meet on the north end of the bar?" The stranger retaliated, also hushed.

Kaede stepped up and instinctively latched onto Genrou's arm, hiding herself behind him as she peered at the stranger.

"I'll explain later." Genrou spoke to the cloaked figure. "Let's go before back up comes."

After nearly running the whole way back to Reikaku, the three entered through a different passage, one that was wedged tightly between a large boulder and a thick oak tree. Kaede was relieved to be back in safety, and collapsed against the tunnel walls in exhaustion.

Genrou untied the strings of his clock and let it fall off, taking a second to regain his breath. "We're lucky there were only two. Y'picked a bad meetin' place."

"Not like we couldn't have handled them." The stranger replied, taking a second to adjust his sleeves.

Tired of being left out of the loop, Kaede spoke up. "Who are you?"

The shorter figure reached up and grabbed the hood of his cloak, pulling it off to reveal his face. His skin was paler than Genrou's, and his features had a much softer look to them. Wisps of purple bangs fell over his forehead.

"This is Nuriko, he's one of th' Suzaku seven." Genrou gave a quick introduction. "This is the reason I sent fer ya." He regarded Kaede.

Deciding to go somewhere more private, the trio navigated through the tunnels to Genrou's room. Genrou turned up the lanterns for more light.

"This is Kaede." He clarified. "Notice anythin' about her?"

Nuriko scanned the girl over. Kaede was getting really tired of being stared at by strange men.

"Her clothes…" He said. "They look like Miaka's, don't they?" A look of sad remembrance echoed in his mauve colored eyes.

Genrou folded his arms and leaned against the wall. "I don't suppose ya heard anythin' about—"

"The soldiers…" Nuriko interrupted. His eyes watched Kaede, though he still addressed Genrou, "I overheard some soldiers last night talking about a young woman who tried to break the citizenry laws, a girl who emitted red light…" He turned back to Genrou. "When I got your message, I figured you had heard about it too, but is she…?"

"I don't know." The redhead sighed, running a hand through his hair, "c'n there even be two?"

Kaede stared as the two older men talked, wondering who on earth Miaka was, and what there could possibly be "two" of. Not only that, but this Nuriko was one of the Suzaku seven too… but who were the Suzaku seven supposed to be anyway?

"It's been two years, Tasuki." Nuriko folded his arms, glancing to Kaede, "and Miaka never even had a chance to perform the ceremony. It… does still seem strange though…"

Tasuki? Who was Tasuki?

"But th' light." Genrou retorted, hiding some frustration, "I saw it myself. There's no way she could emit light like that and not have somethin' t'do with Suzaku." His voice implemented hope. "And she ain't from this world, like th' legend says…"

It was silent for a moment before Nuriko spoke quietly, "and… there was Yui."

Genrou's eyes widened.

Kaede was aggravated. First, there was Miaka, then a Tasuki… Who is this Yui?

"Remember, in Kutou?" Nuriko asked, sadness lightly waving on his voice.

"Tasuki no da!" Chichiri shouted, stepping in front of the bandit as he lunged foreward. Nuriko held his upper-arm tightly to keep him back, but anger flashed in his own eyes as well.

"I… I'm sorry…" Yui apologized, knotting her fingers together tightly.

" Like that'll do us any good now." Tasuki said coldly. "Look at what ya did! An entire country has t'suffer cause of you!"

"Tasuki…" Chichiri's voice pleaded.

"Yui," Nuriko's tone held a sound of resentment, "Just leave now. There's nothing more you can do here… or to any of us."

"I said I was sorry, okay!" The blonde blurted out, tears sweltering over her eyelashes. "Do you think I really wanted any of this! Do you think I wanted Miaka to die? She was my best friend!" Her voice cracked harshly, but she couldn't restrain it. "I didn't mean to ruin your lives, I didn't! If I could do it over again…"

Tasuki strained against Nuriko and Chichiri's grip, but gave up without a fight. "Chichiri," he spoke, "let's go before some of these damn henchmen get after us again…"

"I'm sorry…" Yui whispered, tears running down her cheeks. "I'll…I'll make it better, I promise…"

"We got our powers back a few days after that." Genrou remembered.

Nuriko rubbed his chin. "Maybe she didn't just unseal Suzaku, maybe she…"

"Stop!" Kaede's demanding voice interrupted the dialogue lying out before her. Getting the attention of both men, she took a deep breath an continued. "Will someone please tell me what's going on? Who the heck is Miaka? Yui? And why did you call him Tasuki?" She barely took a second for a breath, "and who is the "other one" that I'm supposed to be, and who are the Suzaku seven, and since when did you have powers!"

"…You didn't tell her?"

"I was waitin' fer you."

"Kaede, maybe you should sit down." Nuriko advised, waving towards the bed. Kaede obeyed, and sat down on the end of the mattress. Nuriko grabbed a chair, and Genrou remained standing.

"There's a legend," Nuriko began, "That says when a country is about to face destruction, a girl from another world will appear and become priestess to their god, and save the land. Our god is Suzaku."

Kaede nodded slowly, feeling as if she had walked into a page from Greek mythology.

"How old are you?"

The question seemed off topic, but she answered anyway. "17."

Nuriko smiled. "Miaka, she would be your age by now…" Shaking his head to push the memories away, he went on. "Miaka was a girl like you who came here two years ago, she was the Priestess of Suzaku. She followed the legend and found all seven of Suzaku's holy warriors, Tasuki and myself included."

"Tasuki?" She repeated the name and looked at Genrou. "That's your name?"

"One of 'em." Tasuki replied.

"Miaka's friend, Yui, was brought into our world around the same time Miaka was, and she became the Priestess of Seiryu. Seiryu is the beast god who watches over Kutou."

A slight scowl appeared on Tasuki's face, but he didn't say anything.

"It seems…" Nuriko took a deep breath, "the morning we were going to perform the ceremony to summon Suzaku, something happened." He paused again, "Chiriko, who we thought was Chiriko, another one of the Suzaku seishi, I mean, turned out to be one of the Seiryu warriors in disguise. He had been sent by Nakago to—"

"Another Seiryu seven?" Kaede guessed. A nod showed she was right.

"He had been sent by Nakago to foil the ceremony. However…"

"Th' kid chickened out." Tasuki took up where Nuriko left off. "He either got scared or realized what he was doin' was stupid, but he disappeared the morning before the ceremony." He unfolded his arms and folded them the other way. "I guess since he didn't do his job, Nakago figured he'd do it fer him."

"It happened so fast." Nuriko stood up. "Miaka, she was so full of life, and he took all of it away from her in an instant. We… we couldn't do anything."

Kaede swallowed hard, feeling the back of her eyes grow warm.

"After that, Yui summoned Seiryu, sealed away Suzaku, and gave Konan to Kutou's emperor. All we know of her last wish was that it unsealed Suzaku."

"Wish?"

"Once the beast-god is summoned, the priestess is granted three wishes." Nuriko explained.

Kaede took a long moment to absorb this information. "Where's Yui now?"

"I don't know the details of what happened to her exactly, but she's dead now." Nuriko replied.

"So… you think I'm the next Priestess of Suzaku?" She voiced the question that had been brewing in her mind.

"Yes." Nuriko said. "You fit the description. Kaede, you may be the answer to our prayers."

Hearing those words again made Kaede's heart race. Her blue eyes glimmered with restrained willingness, but she turned her head sharply away and stood up from the mattress. "I can't."

"What?" Tasuki asked, obviously shocked by her answer.

"I can't!" She repeated. "I want to help you, I really do, but I can't. Don't you remember…Tasuki?" She asked, worry rising in her words, "I have four days to get back to my world before I run out of insulin! I can't become the Suzaku no Miko, or… I'll be just like she was, Miaka…"

Seeing confusion on Nuriko's face, she quickly left the room and returned with her black meter case, unzipping it to show him. "I'm sure you don't understand any of this either, but I'm a diabetic, and in this world, you don't have the medicine I need to stay alive." She pointed to the syringes before tossing the case onto Tasuki's bed. "In four days… I'll go comatose. I don't know how long I'll be like that before I…" Kaede didn't finish her sentence, but her point came across clearly.

The long, uncomfortable silence lasted an eerily long time. "There's no way I know of to get you back, Kaede. Unless, perhaps, we go to Mt. Taikyouku, but that might take too long and we wouldn't be able to get very far without running into problems from Kutou."

"There's always… Mitsukake."

Nuriko and Kaede both looked up at the name.

"I've been thinkin' about it, and it's th'only way fer her to survive. We gotta bring her t'him."

"Mitsukake?" Kaede repeated the strange name.

"Another warrior, like us." Nuriko explained.

"How can he…?"

"He's a doctor. He has the ability t'heal people." He put a hand on the brunette's shoulder. "He can heal ya, Kaede." He turned back to Nuriko. "That's another reason why I need ya. You gotta find out where Mitsukake is."

Nuriko nodded, but his face revealed his unsure thoughts. "Tracking him down will be hard enough, but how would we bring Kaede to him?"

"Why?" Kaede asked, "What's wrong?"

"Ever since Big Blue took over, Mitsukake's been forced t'travel with the Kutou armies." Tasuki explained. "He could be anywhere… Kutou, Konan… hell, he could even be in th'palace or somethin'."

"Which means security is pretty high." Nuriko pointed out. "I can try to find him, but—"

"You only have four days." Kaede realized the doubt in his mind. She sat back down on the bed.

Nuriko tilted Kaede's chin up and gave her a reassuring smile. "Suzaku didn't bring you here for nothing, Kaede. We'll find Mitsukake and take care of you, I promise."

Kaede smiled, suppressing the panic forming in her stomach.

"I should go now, then." Nuriko stepped back from the bed, fixing his cloak and putting the hood back on. "I can't waste anytime."

"Good luck. We're countin' on ya." Tasuki said.

Nuriko nodded. "I know, Tasuki. I know."

"Come in." Kaede called when a knock came at her door.

Tasuki entered the room, carrying a thick blanket and some folded garments with him. He grabbed the clothes and tossed the wool sheet to Kaede. "It gets kinda cold down here, y'might want this."

Kaede took the blanket and unfolded it. "Arigatou."

He put the clothes on the small table. "And these're fer tomorrow. They're probably a bit big, but they're clean."

"Arigatou."

Nearly an hour later, as Tasuki was heading back to his room after a conference with some of the other bandits, he saw light peeking through the cracks of Kaede's door. He went up to it and quietly opened it, surprised to find the girl still awake.

"You okay?"

Kaede sat on the edge of her bed, knees and hands together, a worried expression on her face. She nodded in response to the question.

Tasuki was skeptical. "Y'sure?"

She hesitated, then shook her head in the negative, hand quickly racing to her eyes to wipe away pending tears. "I'm… I'm scared." She bit her lip and furiously used the other hand to wipe her eyes. "I mean… my father is probably worried sick, and I'm going to get behind in school, and I h-have a swim m-meet next week that I can't miss…" Her voice shrank towards the end of her last sentence. She wiped her eyes again with the back of her wrist, frustrated. "And this whole priestess thing, and my…" he shook her head, turning her face away from Tasuki. "Sorry, I can be such a baby sometimes…"

"Nah." Tasuki spoke, stepping into the room. "It's okay. Girls aren't much fun anyway if they won't cry a little."

A quick sob escaped Kaede's desperate struggle. Tasuki left the doorway and sat next to her on the bed.

"Jus' let it out." He advised, hating the way Kaede was suffering. "There are times when even I feel like cryin' a little."

Kaede glanced at him, her eyes red from her attempts to hold back the tears. She wanted him to leave so badly, but then again, he was the only person she knew in this world whom she could consider any sort of friend. Something about the look on his face assured her of his sincerity.

"G-gomen…"

With a short delay, Tasuki put his hand on her shoulder. "I said it's okay. Just cry if ya want to."

With that the walls of Kaede's restraint broke free and her hands rushed up to her face, tears soaking her palms. Tasuki waited with her while she cried, offering her his shoulder when she needed it.